ProbablyAWizard
Newly Registered
Posts: 2
Joined: Sun Jan 21, 2018 10:19 pm

Miracle Fruit growing advice

Hello all,
I recently bought some miracle fruit seedlings (6 months old) and am just wanting to make sure that I'm growing them correctly. They came in little tiny pots and are about 3-4" tall, so I moved them over to some slightly larger pots (about 4" across, square plastic). The soil is a 50/50 peat moss/perlite mix, with a little bit of sulfur added and just a tiny bit of 10-8-6 plant food for acid loving plants. I made sure the soil was pretty damp before I put the plants into it, and measured the pH at almost exactly 5 near the roots. I've only watered them twice so far, with tap water with a little bit of vinegar to bring the pH down to about 5.5 (I thought that was kind of weird, but it's what the seller said to do, and a week later, it hasn't killed them yet, and the soil pH hasn't risen either). They're also over some 6" plastic trays with about an inch of gravel that I'm keeping topped up with water, to help raise the humidity. I'm in northern Alabama (zone 7), keeping them about 3 feet back from a pretty tall east facing window, so they're getting a pretty decent amount of light. The temperature is a pretty constant 70F, maybe up and down 2 degrees at most. There's a fan that blows across them maybe a few hours a day. I'm a little bit concerned, because one of them has 3 very dark, rich green leaves and 4 lighter green leaves, 3 of which have some almost yellowing bits and brownish reddish veins. They're not dry or crinkly or anything, and mostly look pretty healthy, it's just the color that's strange.

My questions are:
How could I improve my growing setup to best ensure the health of these plants?

Why are the leaves on the one plant discolored, and how do I fix it?

Thanks everyone!

User avatar
rainbowgardener
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 25279
Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
Location: TN/GA 7b

Hi and welcome to the Forum!

Pictures always help.

The first thing that jumps out at me is "3 feet back from a pretty tall east facing window" That does not sound like a good amount of light to me. East facing windows get only morning sun. South facing windows are much better. And three feet back means that it is getting no direct sun. If the problem is not enough light then over time your plants will start leaning towards the window and start growing tall and spindly.

You've only had your plants about a week? The other issue may be watering and its hard for me to sort that out. Maybe imafan will come along. I know she grows in a peat-lite (peat moss and perlite) mix. I never have. Peat moss holds on to water like crazy. Perlite is very free draining. So I don't know how your mix acts. Watering twice in a week may or may not be too much depending on how your mix does at holding water. You want your plants to stay moist, but not wet/soggy, most of the time.

Best wishes and keep us posted on how they are doing...

User avatar
applestar
Mod
Posts: 30514
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

Oooh Miracle Fruit is one of my wishlist plants. So I know Logee’s offers it and they are my go-to for tropical plant growing instructions since they provide very detailed descriptions for growing indoors on-line.

Here’s an excerpt of the pdf that caught my eye, but you may see other possibilities. It says to use chlorine-free or de-chlorinated water and NEVER let this plant dry out.

https://www.logees.com/media/care/pdf/Synsepalum.pdf
Sensitive to high fertilizer levels. If you find the leaves are turning brown on the edges you may find that the fertilizer levels are too high or that there are impurities such as chlorine in the water.
I agree with rainbowgardener that east-facing window may not be sufficient light especially in winter time with limited eastern sun exposure. Be sure to put the plants to the LEFT of the space in front of the window so they get a little more intense light as the sun moves around, and I would say within 18 inches from the window. Is there window covering like screen (remove if you can), sheer curtains/blinds (open fully during the day)? Everything blocks a bit of light. CLEAN the window, too (Haha — when I’m giving this particular advice, I always think of the movie My Cousin Vinnie:> )

It’s probably just as well that you will be acclimating the plants to stronger sunlight by moving them now.

User avatar
applestar
Mod
Posts: 30514
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

Couple more points that came to mind

— one is... these could be rooted cuttings rather than seedlings — if so there are probably older leaves that might be normal to fade and fall.

— if the seller is basing instructions on growing the mature mother plant, the watering practices might need to be adjusted for the tiny plants in much smaller volume of growing medium — this include less ability to tolerate fertilizer, etc. additives (quick search shows some vinegar can be used AS FERTILIZER.... note that vinegar can also be used as herbicide) and moisture levels that are above or below optimum range.

User avatar
ElizabethB
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 2105
Joined: Sat Nov 24, 2012 12:53 am
Location: Lafayette, LA

Welcome to the forum.

One thing jumped out at me. Using vinegar will lower not raise the soil pH. It is an acid. With a pH of 5 in a small container I would not attempt to make adjustments. Keep an eye on it but wait until you pot up to attempt minor adjustments.

Good luck. Hang around and visit.

ProbablyAWizard
Newly Registered
Posts: 2
Joined: Sun Jan 21, 2018 10:19 pm

Thanks everybody for the quick responses! Really appreciate it.

I’ve moved the plants to the left side of the window and up onto the actual windowsill to try to maximize how much of the morning light they get - unfortunately I only have access to this one wall of windows, dorm situation. Hopefully it’ll be enough.

I also went out and got a moisture/light/pH meter, and to summarize, I’ve been keeping it too wet and dark I think. I checked for root rot and the root system was healthy (didn’t take pictures unfortunately, both hands were occupied), but I’m definitely gonna let it dry out much more before I water it again. As for the vinegar, I meant lower the pH, not raise it! Whoops. My understanding is that these plants need a low pH, and distilled white vinegar is a very dilute acetic acid, which will lower the pH very well. I know it’s sometimes used as an herbicide, but that’s not nearly as dilute as this. I’ve diluted it in more water until the pH is nearly 6, whereas pure vinegar has a pH around 2.5 I think and would kill just about anything, even acid lovers. Correct me if I’m wrong though! Either way, I’m not gonna water them until the soil is at most somewhat moist at the bottom and dry farther up.

The seedlings are not rooted cuttings if the seller is to be believed, and when I looked for root rot it looked more like planted from seed than a cutting. However, I guess anything is possible. I definitely see what you mean about care instructions being based on his experience from a mature plant, which is probably less sensitive to change, so I should probably quit messing around with it too much for now. I think I’ll probably just use regular distilled water or filtered water next time the dirt is dry.

I’m also thinking that the way I had the plants sitting above the humidity trays may have been making it difficult to drain, so I’ve raised them about an inch or so above where they were.

I’ll attach pictures of the three plants, I meant to yesterday but couldn’t figure out how!

Thanks again for all the responses, I’m glad that all this is so active!
Attachments
To show their current location on the windowsill
To show their current location on the windowsill
B93040A9-FDC8-41D2-BACD-6EE7333B2A05.jpeg
93558384-4184-449A-BEB8-63DBFE8DC997.jpeg
3185CD39-AD9D-4984-98D1-F7700C72BF46.jpeg

User avatar
ElizabethB
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 2105
Joined: Sat Nov 24, 2012 12:53 am
Location: Lafayette, LA

From what I have read your plants should not be sitting in water. Just enough below the rocks to provide humidity. A scant fraction of an inch. They should also not be allowed to dry out. Catch 22. I am a little confused about the actual pH of your soil. 5 is VERY low. No need to lower it. 5.5 - 6 is acceptable. Adjusting pH in a small container is difficult. Keep in mind that it is very easy to love your plants to death. Your plants are also very sensitive to fertilizer. Use extreme caution. You do not need to buy distilled water. Most city water systems are chlorinated. Fill a pitcher with water and let it sit for 24 hours. The chlorine will dissipate. You can also boil your water - probably not easy in a dorm. An interesting topic. Please keep us posted on your progress.



Return to “All Other Fruit”